In January 1994, New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft made a decision that even his wife thought was a mistake.
The Boston-area businessman built his fortune in paper and packaging and has held Patriots season tickets since 1971. He agreed to pay a then-record $172 million for a franchise that has become the punchline of the NFL. The Patriots went 14-50 over the past four seasons, played in a run-down stadium, and appeared to be headed to St. Louis.
Three decades later, Forbes values the team at $10.6 billion. It still placed fourth, behind the Dallas Cowboys, Los Angeles Rams, and New York Giants.
Kraft’s path to ownership began in parking lots. In 1985, he acquired an option on the land surrounding the Patriots’ home. A few years later, he directed former owner Victor Kiam to buy Foxboro Stadium out of bankruptcy for $25 million.
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That deal came with an operating covenant that tied the Patriots to the stadium until 2001, so anyone hoping to move the team would have to deal with Kraft. That leverage proved decisive when James Orthwein, a St. Louis businessman, sold Louis who bought the club in 1992, the Patriots.
Kraft’s advisers valued the team at about $115 million, and he opened with a $125 million bid. Orthwein’s camp came back with an asking price: $172 million. “Was I scared? Yeah, I was scared. But it was my shot,” Kraft told Sports Illustrated.
Kraft got one last offer even after the price, because he could take $75 million to get out of the stadium lease and let the team move. He rejected it.
“It’s not about the money. Some things in life are what you want,” he told Yahoo Sports.
When he officially took over on January 21, 1994, Kraft said his goal was to “help bring a championship to New England,” according to Reuters.
He delivered several times. The Patriots reached the Super Bowl after the 1996 season under Bill Parcells. Then the Bill Belichick-Tom Brady era produced six Lombardi Trophies between the 2001 and 2018 seasons. Kraft also privately financed Gillette Stadium, which opened in 2002 and anchored extensive development in Foxborough.
Money follows winning. In September 2025, the Kraft family sold an 8% stake in the team for over $9 billion. Private equity firm Sixth Street took 3%, and billionaire Dean Metropoulos took 5%.
Forbes ranked the Patriots fourth in the league that year, at $9 billion, and the number continues to climb. Mike Vrabel and Drake Maye led New England back to Super Bowl LX, where the Patriots fell 29-13 to the Seattle Seahawks.
That’s more than 60 times what Kraft paid. He later recalled that his late wife, Myra, got angry when he told her the price. That was the only time he questioned her business decision.
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